• David Schmitz, Marilyn G Klug, and Gary G Schwartz.
• From the Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences, Grand Forks (DS); Department of Population Health, University of North Dakota School of Medicine & Health Sciences, Grand Forks (MGK, GGS).
• J Am Board Fam Med. 2021 May 1; 34 (3): 602-607.

BackgroundExposure to radon at home is the largest cause of lung cancer after smoking, and the combination of smoking and radon increases lung cancer risk several-fold. North Dakota has some of the highest residential radon levels in the United States. Although family physicians in North Dakota commonly counsel patients about smoking cessation, little is known about their knowledge and practices concerning radon.MethodsWe mailed a questionnaire to 350 North Dakota family physicians regarding radon knowledge, beliefs, their own radon testing, and radon counseling of patients. The responses were analyzed by descriptive statistics, analysis of variance, and logistic regression.ResultsSixty-one percent of the surveys were completed. Seventy percent of family physicians correctly identified radon as radioactive; 67% reported that they do not inform patients about radon; and 80% reported never discussing the combined hazards of radon and smoking. Conversely, 35% of family physicians reported that they tested their own homes for radon.DiscussionMost North Dakota family physicians are knowledgeable about radon, and more than one third have tested their own homes. However, only a minority transmit this knowledge to their patients. Future efforts should educate physicians about communicating radon risks, especially in conjunction with smoking.© Copyright 2021 by the American Board of Family Medicine.

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